When it comes to beating the highway booze ban there's a standard level of creative thinking, and then there's thinking outside the box, literally! Barely 100 metres from NH 2 road, a shipping container sits on the open ground in Haryana's Palwal district.

A stunning sight unfolds as India Today TV's special investigation team turns the corner - the rustic cargo cabin has in fact been turned into an alcohol store.

Fully equipped with power supply, this makeshift liquor outlet is a minutes' drive from the nearest police post. On April 5, the operator of this ingenious shop at Softa village first pulls out beer from a fridge and then branded whiskey from inside a carton.

Fully equipped with power supply, this makeshift liquor outlet is a minutes' drive from the nearest police post. On April 5, the operator of this ingenious shop at Softa village first pulls out beer from a fridge and then branded whiskey from inside a carton

In blatant violation of a Supreme Court order banning liquor trade within 500 metres of highways, drinks remain up for sale - that too at a premium - along highways in several parts of the country, reveals the India Today TV investigation.

'It's a Supreme Court ruling but it's the job of the excise inspector (to enforce it).

'What can we do?' retorted head-constable Kushal Kumar when told about the illegal liquor store operating out of a freight holder in his jurisdiction.

At Ballabgarh's Sikri Chowk, two shops were selling Indian-made foreign liquor and country brews just 50 metres off the same highway.

A stunning sight unfolds as India Today TV's special investigation team walks closer - the rustic cargo cabin has been turned into an alcohol store

'What else should we do with this stock?' said the keeper of the IMFL store. 'So, will you continue to sell it?' probed the undercover reporter.

'You mean I should put it out on the road?' quipped the seller. Black marketing of alcohol appears to be business as usual along various highways.

At Atithi Restaurant near Ballabgarh's JCB Chowk, its owner Pankaj Bansal offered several brands of whiskey and beer above their MRPs.

'There's no system of printed price here,' said Bansal.

'We are open 24 hours. But our night prices are higher.' An employee at Choudhary Hotel in Palwal's Baghola area was found to be selling beer in bulk.

'Take as many bottles as you want, 20 or 50. It's there in the fridge 24 hours,' he said. The scene was no different on NH 58, between Delhi and Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh.

The top court ruling has hit hundreds of pubs, five-star hotels and other watering holes within 500 metres of national highways that will have to either go dry, or shut shop

An unlicensed store here demanded Rs 200 for a bottle of beer priced at Rs 140.

'If you buy more, we'll give you a discount,' he said.

The top court ruling has hit hundreds of pubs, five-star hotels and other watering holes within 500 metres of national highways that will have to either go dry, or shut shop.

The order is an attempt to reduce drunken driving on India's deadly roads where 1.5 lakh people were killed in 2015.